Document

Document

A public-relations consultant paid $250 per hour by Sweetwater school district funds was compensated for gauging potential candidates’ interest in running for seats on the school board, an independent review by former U.S. Attorney Greg Vega has found.

It is against state law to use public money to influence election outcomes.

After months of requests from the public and The Watchdog for release of the Vega report, the Sweetwater Union High School District board decided unanimously in closed session Monday to make the findings public. The $15,000 taxpayer-funded study was commissioned in response to The Watchdog’s inquiry in April about billings in which PR professional Scott Alevy described conversations with people who, when contacted, said the meetings didn’t happen or were not described as they remembered.

In addition to confirming those discrepancies, the report concluded, “Alevy may have violated California election laws when he billed the district for discussions with potential and actual board candidates during the 2010 election cycle.”

Alevy’s invoices were submitted through the district’s then-general counsel, GCR Legal, headed by Bonifacio Garcia. When asked for the invoices, the district cited attorney-client privilege and declined to release the bills. The Watchdog obtained them through other means.

The invoices described distribution of “election trend information to key team.” Alevy also reported being “on hand at election central for trending and reports to key team.” He declined to identify the key team in April.

Vega found that Alevy contacted former Chula Vista Councilwoman Patty Chavez and asked her about running for a seat on the school board.

“Alevy told her that ‘they’ were looking for viable candidates,” the report states. “Chavez said she did not know who ‘they’ were. During this conversation, Alevy never told Chavez that he was a consultant being compensated for district matters.”

Chavez told Alevy she was not interested in serving on the Sweetwater school board.

“Alevy was asked why a consultant being paid by the district would have discussions with candidates for the board,” the report states. “Alevy said he was specifically asked by Garcia to gauge the candidate’s interest in running for the board and to answer any questions the candidates might have with respect to district issues.”

Alevy could not be reached for comment Monday evening, but has attributed discrepancies in the billings with matters of confidentiality.

Alex Anguiano, president of Sweetwater’s teachers' union, has voiced concern over Alevy’s bills since last spring.

“It looks like the Vega report is faulting GCR for a lack of oversight of Alevy,” Anguiano said. “I am a little bit disappointed in that he didn’t go a step further in investigating why the district paid the invoices, why the HR department approved the invoices and why the finance department paid the invoices. To me it is crystal clear that our district paid to influence the school board election of 2010.”

David Garcia, spokesman for GCR, issued a report saying the law firm is disgusted by Vega's report and raising some specific issues with it.

"When Vega uses one entry to raise a question about Scott Alevy’s meeting with a candidate, Vega fails to report that when the entry was discovered, Garcia withheld payment to Alevy and GCR never charged the district," the firm's response says.

The response concludes, "A lynch mob mentality is not going to focus the attention where it belongs. And while there is much information protected by the attorney client privilege, much is not. However, it is not included in the single out of context and biased Vega report."

Monday’s gathering was the first board meeting of the year and the first meeting since the District Attorney’s Office charged four current and former officials for participation in an allegedly corrupt pay-to-play culture when awarding construction contracts.

More than 700 people gathered in the gymnasium at Hilltop High School for varying reasons. Many opposed a plan to use district money to pay up to $1.3 million for those who have incurred legal fees in the probe.

A group of about 30 people in attendance supporting board member Arlie Ricasa wore blue ribbons. At least 200 held signs reading “Recall or Resign.”

Mar Vista High School teacher Lauren McLennan served three members, Ricasa, Jim Cartmill and John McCann, with recall notices.

Sofia Reyes, 11, took to the podium Monday to urge board members to not approve the legal fees.

“That money shouldn’t be used to pay for the board member’s attorneys. It should go toward improving the schools,” Sofia said. “Clean up your act. Next year when I enter middle school I want to be proud of my district, not ashamed by what they have done and hidden from us.”